Cucurbit Genetics Cooperative Report 4:36-37 (article 19) 1981
C.J.A. Laborde
Unit of Genetic Resources – INIA, Apartado Postal 112, Celaya, Guanajuato, Mexico
During 1981 we will take field notes, evaluate for breeding purposes and have seed increase of the Cucurbita collected in Mexico during 1979 by Drs. Knight and Whitaker (161 accessions) (1).
In some other crops like peppers, tomatoes, beans, etc., and according with the International Board of Plant Genetic Resources, our field notes are based on the “List of Descriptors” that have been suggested by the IBPGR. A common computer program is already available.
We are planning to do the same for Cucurbita, but the proper “descriptors” are still lacking. If someone is already working on it, please let me know because if this is not the case, I feel we are in a proper time for starting it. Meanwhile, I will appreciate suggestions about the field notes that you are taking in evaluating your introductions. Besides the regular ones on breeding (e.g. disease and insect resistance), please include some others pertinent to taxonomy and botany that could be referred later on to studies related with evolution.
If anyone interested in taking a look at this collection, or sharing some of the seeds, contact me in early June to let you know the best time for a field visit. The collection will be planted at our Agricultural Experiment Station at Bajio, near Celaya, Guanajuato, Mexico.
Literature Cited
- Whitaker, Thomas W. and Robert J. Knight, Jr. 1980. Collecting Cultivated and Wild Cucurbits in Mexico. Econ. Botany. 34: 312-319.